The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act was signed into law on January 18, 2010. No reply from DHSS to CMMNJ's request to be involved in the development and review of the regulations to enact this law. The law is scheduled to take effect in July 2010. Emergency regulations are expected in April 2010--CMMNJ's response to delay? DHSS posted some info re: ATC's and ID cards at: http://www.state.nj.us/health/med_marijuana.shtml Patient advisory groups are forming to petition DHSS to add qualifying conditions to the law.

John Wilson was sentenced to 5 years in prison on 3/19/10; currently in Somerset Co. Jail.

Treasury report: Checking: $2,212.56; PayPal: $2139.67. Please consider a tax-deductible donation to CMMNJ, a 501(c)(3) public charity, to fund education about medical marijuana. Donations may be made through Paypal on our web site, or send checks made out to "CMMNJ" to the address below. Get a free t-shirt for a donation above $15—specify size.

CMMNJ's scheduled meetings are the second Tuesday of each month at the Lawrence Twp. Library from 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM. All are welcome. Snacks are served. The library is at 2751 Brunswick Pike, Lawrence Twp., Tel. #609.882.9246. (Meeting at the library does not imply their endorsement of our issue.) For more info, contact:

The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act was signed into law on 1/18/10. The law is scheduled to take effect in July 2010. Emergency regulations are expected to be put out by the NJ Department of Health (DHSS) in April 2010. CMMNJ formally asked the DHSS to be involved in the development and review of the regulations to enact this law. No reply from DHSS. Medical marijuana patients should begin discussion with your personal physicians now. DHSS posted preliminary info at: http://www.state.nj.us/health/med_marijuana.shtml. CMMNJ patient advisory committee groups should be forming to petition DHSS to add qualifying conditions. Letter sent by CMMNJ to protest DEA raid of caregiver in Colorado (see below).

Welcome to new CMMNJ Board member Svetislav Milic, R.Ph, and advisory Board members Diane Fornbacher and Alan Marain. CMMNJ's next scheduled meeting is April 13, 2010 at the Lawrence Twp. Library from 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM. (Meeting at the library does not imply their endorsement of our issue.) For more info, contact:

As you are aware, in January 2010 New Jersey enacted Legislation authorizing qualified patients upon their doctor's advice to use marijuana medicinally. The law requires patients to register and comply with a program administered by the State. In support of such programs, last year United States Attorney General Eric Holder issued a guidance memorandum* to US Attorneys in states that authorized medical marijuana.

This Memorandum instructed them to essentially focus resources on areas other than medical marijuana programs. Considering the tremendous threats to public safety and the country's welfare posed by terrorism, murder, kidnapping, bank robbery, fraud, drug cartels, public corruption, money laundering, counterfeiting, etc., AG Holder essentially challenged federal prosecutors to focus on concerns other than patients using medical marijuana in accordance with state law. At the time he issued this Memorandum he was doubtlessly aware of the holding in City of Garden Grove v. Superior Court. In this case, California's Fourth District Court of Appeal held that the medical use of marijuana by patients pursuant to State law was legal use, not pre-empted by federal concerns. The court also noted the right of the state to determine medical standards. In response to a petition of certification by the prosecution, the US Supreme Court declined to review that decision.

In light of the above, we were outraged to learn that on February 12, 2010 in Colorado, another medical marijuana state, the Drug Enforcement Administration raided the home of medical marijuana caregiver Chris Bartkowicz, confiscated his property and arrested him.** Compounding this inordinate waste of public resources is the fact that Jeffrey Sweetin, the DEA special agent in charge of the Denver office, and the lead agent in the raid, was quoted in the Denver Post as saying that marijuana "is not medicine." In addition to being patently incompetent to make such a statement, heis completely wrong, as hundreds of studies and the attestations of tens of thousands of patients has proven. As noted above, even the US Supreme Court recognizes that if a state says that marijuana is medicine, then marijuana is medicine in that state. One would expect that the DEA agent responsiblewould, as a minimum, be disciplined for this wretchedly irresponsible conduct.

My purpose in writing to you is to request that your office contact Attorney General Holder and request assurance that the federal government will not waste federal resources harassing New Jersey patients participating in this State's medical marijuana program. Please remind him that patients are not criminals. If the US Attorney has sufficient resources to not only adequately combat all the actual crimes noted above but also to persecute patients, it is evident that the US Attorney's budget is overly generous and should be reduced.

Thank you for acting to protect your constituents who are medical marijuana patients. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Senator Scutari was a sponsor and fierce advocate for medical marijuana in New Jersey. Senator Lesniak began the call to pardon John Wilson when Jon Corzine was still in office. Their renewed call for John's pardon to Governor Chris Christie was released yesterday: READ

A state court last week sentenced John Ray Wilson to five years in prison for growing marijuana in his backyard. Wilson – who suffers from multiple sclerosis (MS) and used the drug only to alleviate his symptoms – was given the minimum term for second-degree drug manufacturing and a three-year sentence for possession.

“The state used poor judgment in charging Mr. Wilson with drug manufacturing,” the Senators wrote in their letter to Gov. Christie. “There was no evidence provided by the prosecution during his trial that anyone else used the marijuana he grew in his backyard in order to find a small measure of relief from his chronic illness. The decision to bring drug manufacturing charges against Mr. Wilson demonstrates a clear case of absence of prosecutorial discretion. That is cruel, unusual and unnecessary.”

The lawmakers urged the Governor to use his power of pardon to commute Wilson’s prison sentence to a period of supervised probation.

Friday, March 19, 2010

New Jersey Multiple Sclerosis patient John Ray Wilson was sentenced to 5 years in state prison today for growing 17 cannabis plants to treat his condition.

His attorney, James Wronko, said that an appeal is being planned.

Judge Robert B. Reed passed the sentence today as his mother and grandmother wept just a few feet away. John’s younger brother, who is confined to a wheelchair, was also in the courtroom.

Judge Reed mentioned the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act several times during the hearing, acknowledging that the state now recognizes marijuana as an effective treatment for MS. The law was signed on January 19, 2010.

Wilson was prosecuted by the State Attorney General’s Office, who had asked for a 7-year prison term.

NJ superior Court Judge Reed took pains to explain that he was exercising the greatest leniency in accordance with the law.

Members of the Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey (including this correspondent) were in the courtroom today along with Wilson’s family.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

This week the Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey (CMMNJ) will hold a Town Hall Meeting regarding New Jersey’s new medical cannabis law. Prospective patients, medical marijuana policy experts and local advocates will present updates on the law’s progress and then answer questions from the public and the media.

The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act was signed into law on January 19, 2010 after five years of legislative consideration. Patients expect the law to be fully implemented within 2010. The NJ Department of Health and Human Services (DHSS) will have the responsibility of overseeing the safe access program.

The CMMNJ Town Hall Meeting on 3/20 will focus on the following topics:- Who will qualify for the program as patients and caregivers- Operating an Alternative Treatment Center: possible regulations- Awareness and Education for individuals and medical professionals

Panelists will also discuss the outcome of the Wilson trial. MS patient John Ray Wilson will be sentenced on Friday 3/19 at the Somerset County Courthouse. Wilson was acquitted by a jury on first-degree felony charges, but was convicted on second and third degree felonies for cultivating 17 cannabis plants. Wilson says that he was growing the cannabis to only treat his disease and does not have any health insurance.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

As you are aware, in January 2010 New Jersey enacted Legislation authorizing qualified patients upon their doctor’s advice to use marijuana medicinally. The law requires patients to register and comply with a program administered by the State. In support of such programs, last year United States Attorney General Eric Holder issued a guidance memorandum* to US Attorneys in states that authorized medical marijuana.

This Memorandum instructed them to essentially focus resources on areas other than medical marijuana programs. Considering the tremendous threats to public safety and the country’s welfare posed by terrorism, murder, kidnapping, bank robbery, fraud, drug cartels, public corruption, money laundering, counterfeiting, etc., AG Holder essentially challenged federal prosecutors to focus on concerns other than patients using medical marijuana in accordance with state law. At the time he issued this Memorandum he was doubtlessly aware of the holding in City of Garden Grove v. Superior Court. In this case, California's Fourth District Court of Appeal held that the medical use of marijuana by patients pursuant to State law was legal use, not pre-empted by federal concerns. The court also noted the right of the state to determine medical standards. In response to a petition of certification by the prosecution, the US Supreme Court declined to review that decision.

In light of the above, we were outraged to learn that on February 12, 2010 in Colorado, another medical marijuana state, the Drug Enforcement Administration raided the home of medical marijuana caregiver Chris Bartkowicz, confiscated his property and arrested him.** Compounding this inordinate waste of public resources is the fact that Jeffrey Sweetin, the DEA special agent in charge of the Denver office, and the lead agent in the raid, was quoted in the Denver Post as saying that marijuana “is not medicine.” In addition to being patently incompetent to make such a statement, he is completely wrong, as hundreds of studies and the attestations of tens of thousands of patients has proven. As noted above, even the US Supreme Court recognizes that if a state says that marijuana is medicine, then marijuana is medicine in that state. One would expect that the DEA agent responsible would, as a minimum, be disciplined for this wretchedly irresponsible conduct.

My purpose in writing to you is to request that your office contact Attorney General Holder and request assurance that the federal government will not waste federal resources harassing New Jersey patients participating in this State’s medical marijuana program. Please remind him that patients are not criminals. If the US Attorney has sufficient resources to not only adequately combat all the actual crimes noted above but also to persecute patients, it is evident that the US Attorney’s budget is overly generous and should be reduced.

Thank you for acting to protect your constituents who are medical marijuana patients. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Ken and Jim at Redbank Fundraiser

About The Coalition

Coalition members hold diverse opinions, but we all agree:

Arresting patients is wrong, and it must stop now.

Modern clinical research, centuries of experience and the impassioned personal accounts of thousands of real patients concur: Marijuana can alleviate symptoms of certain serious medical conditions, and it can do so when other drugs fail to help.

Doctors should be free to recommend this medicine to promote health, and sick or injured New Jerseyans should be free to use it responsibly.

The safety margin for therapeutic marijuana is as wide as it can be ─there is no known lethal dose.

New Jersey healthcare professionals dispense potentially lethal drugs every day. We trust them to do so very carefully, and solely to benefit their patients. Common sense and compassion demand that doctors should control non-lethal marijuana medicine for those who truly need it. To make this important change a reality, your voice is needed.

The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act was introduced in the State Senate in January 2005 by Senator Nicholas Scutari (D-Linden). A companion bill is pending in the Assembly, sponsored by Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Princeton) and Assemblyman Michael Carroll (R-Morris Township).